Not Quite The Way They Planned
by TenPointsFromGryffindor
Summary: The golden trio believe that against Voldemort, they're in serious need of help. Together with a bored, irrational Sirius they summon a demon in order to become more powerful, but things don't work out quite how they were meant to...
1. Prologue: Old Books, Strong Chains

**Disclaimer: Copyright not me. Yup**

**Warning: Umm... nothing. Wow. Actually theres a little slightly bad language and OOCness does that count?**

**Thanks: To my darling, LunaKyria without whom nothing would ever be written and I'd be a bounding mess of half-formed plot bunnies.**

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Prologue

**_Old Books, Strong Chains and the Beginning_**

Sirius was going stir crazy. It was bad enough he was cooped up in a house, on the run from the law after escaping being wrongly incarcerated within the terrifying wizard prison Azkaban, but the house he was cooped up in… well. His childhood home, Number 12 Grimmauld Place, was about as comforting as Azkaban – except the Black house had a worse paint job.

The rest of the order members were out in the world, doing useful things that would eventually aid in the downfall of the Dark Lord, and Sirius was frustrated that he had to sit in his house, bored and useless like a house elf whose master was obsessive with cleaning charms.

It had helped a little when, not long into the summer holidays, his godson Harry and his friends Ron, Hermione had moved in to stay with the rest of the order for their safety. The three couldn't leave either so at least the last Black wasn't alone anymore.

Now, however, they'd been stuck in the house for four and a half weeks and the novelty of having company was wearing off. The boys were just as openly bored as Sirius, and the older man swore he saw Hermione sigh and pull at her hair when she thought no one noticed every now and then, as though she might actually be sick of pouring over books every minute of the day.

The dark haired man was interrupted in his musings by a loud crash from the hallway. Pulling himself lethargically out of his large armchair he'd been sitting in he followed the noise to find the cause of the commotion.

"Ronald!" Hermione scolded, bending down to collect the multitude of fallen books, "Honestly, you can't just _watch _where you're going? It's not like there's a huge crowd for you to be jostled by!"

"Sorry," the red head replied, muttering to his shoes as his face tinged with pink. He too leaned down and began picking up any items that had been dropped near him.

"Hey, what's that?" Harry's voice rang out curiously from behind his best friend Ron as he made his way up the stairs to where the other occupants of the house were standing. Sirius - who had wondered out of his study to witness the collision if the teenagers on the landing - followed his godson's gaze to find a thick, old tome with an intricate Celtic-looking cover.

Hermione glanced over to the object of their curiosity and avoided all of their gazes, Ron's now included, as she answered the question as though the books at her feet had inquired.

"Oh, that..." she paused for a long while, rearranging her already gathered pile of belongings, "That's just an old book I've been trying to translate from ancient runes," she said finally, before adding, "I need to keep up my study over the summer, you know."

She was telling the truth, but all of the wizards felt as though there was something she was leaving out. Sirius looked at her inquiringly.

"So, what have you translated so far?" he queried.

"Oh, nothing really, just boring old-"

"Blimey! Check this out!" Ron interrupted, having snatched the book up while Hermione had been avoiding looking at them. He stared wide-eyed at the page he'd flipped open to, the lines and squiggles of the nonsensical text translated and annotated in Hermione's neat hand-writing beneath the volume's title.

Turning the book slightly to give Harry and Sirius a look, Ron began to read the translated version out loud.

Hermione sighed, preparing herself for her friends' reactions.

"Demonology - a wizard's guide to demons and their summoning."

Ron was still staring in shock, and awe, at the words he'd read out. Harry looked excited. Sirius looked calculating.

"Look," the only witch in the group began, looking around at the others with a serious expression on her face, "I didn't want to tell you guys about this becau-"

"So, wait," Sirius interrupted, "You mean, normal wizards can summon demons?"

"Well, according to this text, yes. But-"

She didn't get to finish her sensible statement before she was cut off by excited chattering.

"This is bloody brilliant!" Ron burst out; face lighting up in a grin.

"Yeah!" Harry agreed, expression matching the red head's, "We'll beat Voldemort for _sure_ with a demon on our side!"

"We'll show the rest of the Order we can do something useful!" chimed in Sirius, the supposed 'adult'.

The boys all nodded in agreement, sharing huge smiles, before all three turned pleading eyes on Hermione.

"'Mione," Harry said, looking at her with a serious expression, "You know that our only chance against Voldemort is if we've got something unexpected on our side. This could be it!"

"And it would be all thanks to your study and translation." Sirius added, hoping to appeal to her academic side.

She still looked reluctant.

"Any wizard _could_ summon a demon, but most don't, not just because of the fact that all the texts are in ancient languages, but also because the spells are difficult and there's a load of long rituals to do. Basically, only desperate people try it," she stated, attempting to deter them from their decision.

"Hermione," Sirius said dark eyes sombre, "I don't know about you, but I want to do something to get rid of the Dark Lord. Not just sit around and wait for bastards like Snape to betray us."

They really were determined, she realized.

Knowing that even if she didn't help them they'd try to do the summoning anyway, the bushy-haired girl sighed heavily.

"Look, fine," she said, glaring, "but you have to listen to me and give me time to translate and research. And help me with it too."

"Brilliant 'Mione, you're a goddess!" Ron exclaimed, making her blush a little at the honesty in his voice.

"Let's make it a surprise for the others," Sirius said, sure that at least one of the 'responsible' adults would prevent them from completing their plan, "it can be our little secret!"

The three wizards grinned at each other, and Hermione couldn't help but smile a little herself. Sirius was right; at least they'd finally be _doing_ something.

* * *

Uchiha Sasuke understood that he hadn't exactly racked up a whole lot of good karma. He was well known for his intelligence, although even if he'd been a complete dunce the fact remained, with the things he'd done, he'd probably earned himself enough bad karma to last himself several lifetimes. Because of this, the dark haired seventeen-year-old couldn't help but constantly feel as though this was the fates cruel and twisted way of paying him back.

"Quit staring, ya bastard! It's creepy."

Said punishment, more commonly known as Naruto the Knucklehead Ninja, grumbled at him from where the blonde had been sleeping.

Rolling over, Naruto stretched his limbs out, lightly pulling on the chain that link the two shinobi's arms.

Yes, that was right. He, Uchiha Sasuke was chained to his self-proclaimed rival and (though he'd never tell the idiot) best friend Uzumaki Naruto.

And they weren't just normal chains. No, these chains were not only chakra enforced, they were enforced with the Fifth Hokage, Lady Tsunade's chakra. Although, thanks to the strength of her power, it allowed the boys some flexibility with the chain length and elasticity, it also meant that any attempt to break the chain and the intimidating, big breasted women would know. Immediately. Which was a scary thought, really. That woman could probably even scare Itachi with her motherly anger, Sasuke mused.

Of course, they hadn't been chained together - and by their village leader herself, no less - as a practical joke.

Sasuke supposed he really should be glad for the chain. It was like an umbilical cord. After all, the man - teenager, technically - attached to the other end of it was probably the only reason he was alive. Or at the very least the only reason he wasn't on the run from the ANBU Black Ops.

It was well known that the youngest, and only remaining, Uchiha had betrayed his village by joining Orochimaru, the most insane of the legendary three ninja. He'd gathered a lot of power and knowledge by training under the snake man, but he'd lost something. A part of his humanity, perhaps.

Knowing that Orochimaru planned to use his body as a vessel, Sasuke had defeated the madman once he became strong enough and left to take his vengeance on his brother - the slaughterer of his clan.

Fighting, and eventually killing, Itachi had ended a long journey. The Uchiha had been lost, unable to comprehend his life as anything other than a self proclaimed 'Avenger'. He lost his purpose.

But throughout the whole time, his team mate - and friend, though once again he was loath to admit it - Naruto, from the leaf village had never given up on finding him.

And Naruto had become very strong, mastering the Fourth's jutsu, the _Rasengan_ and learning to control the demonic chakra of the Kyuubi that he housed.

When the energetic and determined blonde found Sasuke, the dark haired teen had just killed his brother and was lost, confused and angry. They fought, tooth and nail, until Naruto looking half-dead finally managed to drag Sasuke's bruised and bleeding form back to Konoha.

Thrilled as Naruto, Sakura and Kakashi were to have their commrade back, the rest of the village, however, wasn't too excited.

Uchiha Sasuke was an unranked (though presumed A or S class) missing nin. And while there were those who wished to preserve the Uchiha blood line, there were many who pushed for his immediate execution.

The solution the Hokage came up with was a one year long probation period, followed by a retrial.

ANBU guards were wasted on surveillance for a whole year, and Chuunins couldn't hope to guard a ninja of the Uchiha's level. Tsunade also said something about wanting Sasuke to 'integrate into society' and so, it was decided that Naruto was to be his guard and in order to prevent escape they would be chained together.

Which was how they'd been for the past three and a half months.

At first it'd been strange, not to mention incredibly awkward - especially for Sasuke who was used to people giving him a wide berth from either fear (other ninja) or awe (fan girls). However, they'd fallen into a routine and, though the hyperactive blonde shinobi was a total idiot, the withdrawn teenager found he was actually content with his life at that moment. Not that he'd ever admit it. On pain of death via rabid fan girls.

"- have ramen for dinner!"

As soon as he heard the word 'ramen', Sasuke pulled himself back into the present and grunted out a 'no'.

Naruto scowled at the stoic man he'd fought so hard for. The jerk probably hadn't even been listening as Naruto had gone through what he planned to do (and drag Sasuke to do) today. In fact it looked like the other teen had been pretty much zoned out the whole time Naruto had been getting dressed and talking.

"C'mon, get dressed you Uchiha bastard," the Kyuubi container said, grinning as though he was the fox he hosted, "I wanna go train! And when I kick your arse you gotta buy me ramen!"

Sasuke glared at the idiot for good measure, but quietly did as he said, secretly looking forward to sparring with the other shinobi. He supposed, considering what he deserved, being chained to Uzumaki Naruto wasn't the worst that could have happen.

**A/N:**

**Well, what do you think? I'm wondering if I should continue with this so if you think I should please do tell me! If I get enough reviews I'll post the next chapter (already written) very soon! :)  
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	2. Rituals and Training

**Disclaimer: Don't own 'em and can't afford ta buy 'em.  
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**Warning: Nothing, I think... Yup, it suprises me too.  
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**Thanks: Loony, a continued source of encouragement. And to everyone who alerted, favourited and most importantly _reviewed!_  
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**_Rituals, Training and a Necessary Plot Point_**

Hermione sighed as she deftly stirred the contents of the cauldron, ensuring the thick liquid stirred smoothly into the currently flaky substance which was slowly and steadily becoming a nice, fine powder. The Runespoor venom – an addition that she was grateful for, considering it allowed the summoned demon to communicate with them – had to be carefully poured and watched until fully absorbed into the mixture before she could add the dried Ashwinder eggs (which inspired the devotion of the summoned) however, the bushy-haired witch found her mind wandering, not for the first time, to wonder why in Merlin's name she'd agreed to do this.

Oh, that was right, the boys and Sirius had convinced her. Hermione remembered when they'd been sitting in Harry and Ron's room, all in a circle on the floor, after the others had found out about the old book she'd discovered.

"So," she had said, eyes scanning the others in the room, tone sarcastic, "Which demon should we summon? I've translated at least half the book and most of the page titles."

They looked at her all with a strange mix of expressions on their faces. She saw awe, a little trepidation, but predominantly their features shone in excitement. Sirius broke the silence.

"Well, let's have a look then, shall we?" He said opening the book in the centre of the circle, as they all huddled around to discover what it contained.

After few hours of pouring over the books, disregarding the ridiculous (_"Ron, much as I know you'd appreciate it, I highly doubt a succubus would be much use against You-Know-Who," "You never know 'Mione, the old creep's probably so sexually frustrated he'd totally fall for it!")_ and the dangerous (_"Hm, here's a Bebilith" "What is it, mate?" "Giant spider, body the size of –" "No.")_ they were beginning to lose hope finding something that they had the power to summon, which would actually do them any good.

"Wait, guys," Harry had said, as he flicked to the page after a detailed instruction on summoning some sort of water demon, "This looks promising."

He read to himself for a bit, before looking up.

"Seems good, it's a fox, so it should be small. It's powerful and intelligent but not harmful to the wizard – or witch – ," he added, glancing at his female friend, "who summons it."

"Yeah?" Ron answered, "What's it say?"

Hermione's neat handwriting covered the leaf of parchment that was tucked into the book at the page it referred to and Harry lightly cleared his throat before reading it aloud.

"The Fox Demon, known as _kit-zune_," – he stumbled over the pronunciation of the foreign name – "is intelligent, cunning and powerful. In mythology, fox demons, depending on their power, have a certain number of tails that they can 'attain'. Each tail is a symbol of wisdom and strength. The – uh – _ku-bi_ or Nine-Tails is the prime form of a fox demon. When summoning a fox demon, the wizard must remember to exert authority and prove to the demon the intelligence of its master. If this is unsuccessful, a fox demon will likely become a trickster, creating havoc for the summoner until it is returned to its own dimension. Whilst the location of the natural habitat of the fox demon has long been speculated, there is no concrete proof of where the creature is actually from. Few wizards have attempted to summon a fox demon; however reports of those who have returned very satisfactory, with a one or two tailed beast proving rather loyal and intelligent."

It did sound good, in fact, it sounded perfect. According to the text, it would be powerful and useful but they could still control it. It might be exactly what they needed to defeat the Dark Lord.

And really, Hermione knew as she finished making the powdery substance that would form one of the summoning circles, Ashwinder eggs added as she'd mused, that was the whole reason she'd gone along with this – was _still_ going along with this. If it gave the Order or Dumbledore or _Harry_ a chance, she knew she had to take it.

It had taken them a little over a week to get to the stage they were currently, with hours of toil being limited to the times they were alone in the old house. But now, with Hermione finished the powder and still a couple of hours before the first of the order – and Fred and George from their shop – would begin to come home, they decided to do the ceremony.

Clearing a space in a disused but relatively spacey room, the laid the book in the middle to see the designs and began to draw the summoning circles on the floor. Sirius and Ron had the outer circle – half each – and Hermione had the task of spreading the special powdered mixture as the inner circle.

That left Harry with the middle circle. Painstakingly copying the runes to near perfection (the importance of this had been continuously lectured into the boys over the last hours or so), the bespectacled wizard absently remembered how expensive the chalk substance they were using was. It contained powdered Tebo hair – absolutely necessary for protection, just in case, Hermione had said.

Finished, he stepped back, observing the interesting markings, and before long he was joined by his godfather and two best friends. A sharp silence fell over the house.

"Right," Hermione said after a few heartbeats, her voice sounding only a little more confident than she felt – and not half as much as she'd like it to sound, "You three ready?"

They nodded together – even Hermione – and stepped forward and kneeled down, all placing their hands on the outer circle, pouring their magic and beginning the incantation that they'd spent hours learning and practicing in unison.

* * *

Naruto was happy.

'Isn't that a nice change' the blonde thought with a smile.

Sure, there were still people in the village that whispered 'no good' and pulled their children away from him, but he was seventeen now, he didn't need playmates and anyway – he had friends. He even had the bastard Uchiha, granted the whole chain thing was annoying, but it was totally worth it to have his snobbish prick of a best friend back home, alive and safe.

A kunai was suddenly pressed against his throat, and from behind him a deep voice rumbled in his ear.

"Zoning out, dead last?"

"You wish, ya bastard!" Naruto yelled out, grin widening as he quickly spun in the grip grabbing the other shinobi by the shoulders and hauling him over the blonde's own head. Luckily, the chain could expand enough to allow them a pretty decent Taijutsu fight, allowing them to keep in shape by sparring.

Turning back around, he saw the dark-haired ninja easily touch down on his feet, hand in front for balance. Instead of standing up, however, the Uchiha simply kicked his feet causing the blonde to jump into the air in avoidance.

Their training session continued until they found themselves in a stalemate – standing face to face, Sasuke with his katana (which he'd drawn half way into the fight) pressed lightly to Naruto's jugular, Naruto with two kunai pricking Sasuke's skin, set to skewered the other's heart at a moment's notice.

The two stood, staring at each other for a while, wondering if the other would waver, before the blonde laughed loudly.

"Right, well, I think you still owe me ramen!" he exclaimed, pulling his knives back so they were no longer dangerous – well, in a dangerous position.

Sasuke's answer – whatever it would have been – was cut off when they both felt a strange sensation. It was similar to using a teleporting jutsu, except that this feeling tugging on their stomachs made the slightly-uncomfortable jutsu feel like utter bliss. There was also a distinct difference, a kind of finality that was felt. It was worrying.

The bareness of the clearing and the distant trees of Konoha forest twisted and faded away as though they were mere Genjutsu to be replaced by a small dark room. Shocked by the abnormality – and pain – of the feeling the Uchiha hadn't activated his Sharingan until after the strange jutsu had already finished. Naruto looked at him in surprise when he cursed aloud.

The blonde shinobi tried to take in his surroundings as his eyes adjusted to the lack of light. He and Sasuke had already slipped into fighting stances – weapons conveniently in hand – and he wondered if he was still in the Konoha area. Scanning the room, he could see only four people who, though they had strange auras – the teenaged male with messy dark hair especially – contained no malleable chakra. 'Civilians, then' he thought. So, how on Earth had they gotten _here_? He didn't even know where here was.

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**A/N:**

**Okay, a couple of things:**

**Firstly, because I was asked - NaruSasu? Or any other romantic pairings - what do you think? I'd love to hear your opinions!**

**Secondly, thanks for the support! I'm already behind schedule '-_- so, please bare with me! Also, sorry for the short-ness of the chapter and the kinda-cliffy :P**

**Thirdly, please review!**

**~Trix  
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	3. Red Eyes and Strange Clothes

**Disclaimer: Fanfiction. 'Nuff said**

**Warning: ... utterly appalling update speed? I am sorry about that.**

**Thanks: My beautiful Luna, because, ironically enough, her OCD is one of the things that keeps me sane.**

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**_Red Eyes, Strange Clothes and an Anticipated 'Twist'_**

Something had gone wrong. Very wrong. He didn't understand how but he knew that it was due to some freakish circumstance because Hermione – dare he think, _his_ Hermione – would never make a mistake like this.

Ron Weasley stared at the place where a cute little fox demon was supposed to appear to help them beat He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. But their summoning hadn't worked right – oh no, not at all – and the red head was gaping, confused and a little terrified.

After all, the two people – at least, they looked like people – that had come instead of the demon looked much scarier then he imagined the demon itself would. The blonde one wasn't too bad, he reasoned because at least the serious, deadly expression on his face looked out of place. But when Ron eyed the sharp looking knives in his hand and the way he was holding himself as though he could pounce any moment, he still felt very glad for the protection spell the brilliant Hermione had ensured was in place.

The other person – 'Man?' Ron thought in some shocked-into-functioning section of his mind, 'He doesn't look that much older than us, though…' – was terrifying. The Weasley wouldn't have been surprised if the one with dark hair – who was holding a long, thin and obviously deadlysword, which did nothing to calm down the wizard – was actually some sort of 'Head Demon' coming to see who dared call on his subordinates. The red head looked up into frightening and lethal-looking red eyes and saw his mere fifteen years of life flash before his own.

He let out a whimper.

The silence in the room was finally broken when the blonde, stood up, replacing his knives to some unknown hiding place and turned to the dark-haired one with the sword.

"Bastard," he said quietly, his voice a gravelly sound that many teenagers would kill for, "any idea where we are?"

Ron supposed the reason they were speaking English was because of the communication charm in the ritual. With their loose, flowing clothes and strange weaponry they certainly didn't look like they were from anywhere that natively spoke his language.

In response to the question, the dark haired man slid his sword into its sheath on his back and stood up straight, eyes scanning the room before resting on the four English people. It seemed as though he was going to ignore the blonde until he spoke softly, not shifting his gaze at all.

"I didn't see, moron."

It seemed like these guys didn't like each other very much, Ron thought as he considered the cold tone and insults they traded.

The blonde – who was wearing orange, the redhead saw, now that he had something to focus on other than the weapons – didn't seem to like this answer and blew up at the other man – _or demon or whatever they were_.

"Sasuke, you bastard! Whattaya _mean_ you didn't see! You're 'sposed see everything with those damned eyes of yours and the _one _time it's REALLY important. Like, you know _we've been captured_ and you DIDN'T SEE?"

By then, the blonde had turned around to grab his companion's shoulders and the glint of metal between them made Ron realise that they were joined by a long thin piece of chain wrapped around each of their wrists.

They made such a sight, he could only stare. The one with spiky blonde hair was all fired up and aggressive – but not in the same deadly way he'd been before – wearing an orange and black body-suit type thing which was baggy, but not overly so and a strange headband around his forehead (seemingly the only thing holding back his shaggy hair) and he was _chained_ to that other one who had black hair and pale features, looking exotic and frighteningly calm, the one who was wearing clothing Ron couldn't even comprehend. As far he could tell, almost all of the guy's chest was showing and _was that rope thing a belt or some weird skirt_?

Fortunately, while the red-headed English teenager was having a minor breakdown due to shock, the others had recovered enough to draw their wands.

Harry Potter looked between the two strange people inside the circle, cautiously noting the weapons they still had within easy reach, and stepped forward – just outside of the third summoning circle, wand in his hand hanging loosely by his side.

Clearing his throat, he looked at the two and began to speak, his steady voice surprising himself.

"Excuse me, who are you?"

Bright blue and coal black eyes turned and focused on him, the room suddenly going silent.

'_-wait! Black? I could've sworn they were red before…_' The wizard thought confusedly before quickly dismissing it as his over-active imagination. '_Psyching myself out_' he sighed internally, nearly shaking his head.

Surprisingly, it was the dark-haired one spoke first, securing his hand over the other's mouth as the blonde's expression morphed with astounding speed into a huge grin.

"Shinobi," he said shortly.

"However," he continued after receiving only confused silence from Harry and his friends, "we're supposed to be confined to our village, do you know how we got here?"

Harry, completely thrown by the way he could be so polite and yet cold and terrifying at the same time, gaped for a few minutes, unable to answer. Eventually, though, he got a hold of his senses.

'_These guys may seem scary but you're a wizard!_' he thought to himself, mentally berating his own ridiculous actions, '_These seem like the kind of people who respect strength. Come on Potter, you can do this._' He felt kind of stupid, giving himself a pep-talk but it seemed to help because when he spoke next, his voice came out more confident than he felt.

"Yes, I do know how you got here."

He paused for a beat, hoping Hermione's protection spell really was holding, though still not looking forward to the possible reaction. These guys seemed proud, he doubted they would appreciate being yanked from wherever they were from to help with someone else's problem.

'_But still,_' he reflected, almost letting out a laugh which would have been devoid of humour, '_they did ask._'

"We summoned you."

* * *

Sasuke had released the _Sharingan_ in order to conserve chakra but the words from the skinny, dark-haired boy's mouth made his inheritance threaten to take over again. He could almost feel the red seeping into his vision. Closing his eyes, he forced it back, thinking over the words again wondering at their connotations.

'_We summoned you._'

Belatedly, he realised his hand was still clamped over Naruto's mouth and the idiot's jaw was working in an attempt to speak, causing a wet tongue to trace saliva along Sasuke's palm. It took all of his considerable self control to remove his grip and casually wipe the offending spit into the blonde's hair coolly instead of doing something _very_ un-Uchiha and childish like yanking his hand away and yelling 'Ew!'.

The momentary distraction on Sasuke's part allowed the blonde to burst into conversation.

"Summoned? So where's the seal? Or the blood contract? How the hell d'you manage to have ninjas as your summons, anyway? Does that even _work_? Aren't you civilians? You must be _damn_ good at masking your chakra, it's like you got none at all!"

The onslaught of questions seemed to have stunned the foreign teenager who'd stepped up and Sasuke couldn't hold back his sigh.

"Blood… contract?" the female in the room spoke up, voice somewhere between confused and anxious.

Naruto turned bright blue eyes to her as though he was surprised to find her there, though Sasuke knew for certain he was well aware of his surroundings.

He laughed sheepishly and scratched the back of his head as he addressed her, completely relaxed regardless of the strange surroundings and the weird people and the implications _'we summoned you'_ brought with it.

"Well, _I _had to do one with Gamabu-"

"Shut _up_, dead last."

Sasuke's patience had all-but run out. Not at Naruto, not really. He'd like to say that the idiot's carefree attitude was what made him annoyed but the fact was he hated to lose control. The Uchiha was about as far from control of the situation as he could get and those words were bouncing around in his head.

_We summoned you._

Naruto looked at his friend balefully for the reprimand, but concerned and alert blues eyes betrayed the false expression.

"No need to snap, bastard," he said commented lightly, not losing his temper as he once would have, "'M just trying to get some answers here."

Because that was how Naruto worked. That wasn't to say he _couldn't _do hard-arse interrogation, but his talent was disarming people, worming his way in, making them trust him. It made him and Sasuke a great team. They were total opposites, 'good cop, bad cop', one friendly and likable, the other cold and seemingly emotionless – both clearly dangerous.

It was a brilliant way to get information and Sasuke reined in his – well, he wouldn't say _panic_ but it was a close feeling – thanks to the familiar situation and fell silent, moving back to stand slightly behind the blonde who'd already turned back toward their _summoners_.

"So, what are we doing here anyway?" Naruto asked the strangers, tone less rushed but still friendly and bright.

At the confused looks they were given he continued, "I mean, you summoned us right? So, how come? We might be able to help you and then you can send us back."

He grinned at them even as he could feel Sasuke's glare on his back. They had to cooperate with these people. After all, they had no idea where they were or whether they were even in any country that they knew of, and they definitely had no way of getting home. The bastard knew that so Naruto felt no guilt as he ignored him completely.

The adult in the room, who'd been quiet up until then, stepped forward beside the dark haired teen and addressed the blonde shinobi.

"We'll see," he said dismissively, seeming suddenly in control of the situation, "Would you mind telling us your names? I'm Sirius, this is Harry" – he pointed to the boy next to him – "and behind us are Hermione and Ron."

A look of confusion at the strange names crossed Naruto's face before his grinned returned, widening.

"Naruto Uzumaki, and this dumbass is Sasuke." He purposely didn't mention his friend's last name _just in case_.

"Hermione," the dark haired adult – Sirius, he'd said his name was – had nodded at them before turning and addressing the girl, "I think by now some of the Order should have arrived, see if you can find Professor Dumbledore? Or, if not, Remus?"

She'd jumped a little at the attention, but was soon hurrying out of the room. Silence reigned for long stretch of time, until the two shinobi could hear the footsteps of three people returning to the door.

A strange man entered the small room, his presence understated but his power palpable. Sasuke watched him warily. His long grey beard was pulled into a loose tie on his chest and he was clothed in the strangest attire the foreign teens had ever seen. Granted the tight, restricting clothing that they'd vaguely noticed the others wearing was weird, but it paled in comparison to the eye-catching silver _dress_ this man was sporting. Alert blue eyes twinkled from behind odd spectacles which sat upon his wizened face and both Sasuke and Naruto knew he was the oldest man they'd ever laid eyes on. Hell, he was older than the Sandaime – _if he was still alive!_

"Good evening, gentlemen," he greeted amicably, a knowing and amused glint in his eyes, "It seems we have something of a problem here."

Sasuke very nearly snorted, '_something of a problem?'_ That was one way to put it.

**A/N**

**Please review. Trixie loves them, yes I do. ^_^  
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	4. Old Wizards and Young Assasins

**Disclaimer: Hm, you get it.**

**Warning: Aha! A warning, and this is important so I'm gonna go ahead and say**

**IMPORTANT: I have decided, THIS WILL NOT BE SASU/NARU. SO THAT MEANS NO SLASH, sorry. Please still read!**

**Thanks: Loony, dear, you are… Ravenclaw and Slytherin – the best one I know ^_^**

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_**Old Wizards, Young Assassins and that Annoying Building of the Plot**_

"So, if you don't mind me asking," Dumbledore said, smiling in a grandfatherly way, "How old are you two?"

The two wizarding boys were surprised at the casual question; Harry stared at their headmaster in astonishment and Ron's jaw dropped open. Their thoughts were in unison, 'Why in Merlin's name would he start _there_?'

On the rush down the couple of flights of stairs, Hermione had managed to calm herself down enough from her panicked and guilt-stricken state to inform Dumbledore and Mad-eye Moody (both of whom had been talking in the dingy kitchen) of the situation a couple of floors above them.

She'd explained – a little hastily – how they'd attempted to help the Order against He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, and how they'd ended up with the two '_shinobi'_ named Naruto and Sasuke due to some sort of strange accident.

To Hermione's surprise, Professor Dumbledore had taken it quite well and, following his respected friend's lead, Moody had also been surprisingly accepting. Well, in a grumbling-about-security-and-young-wizards-these-days sort of way. The old headmaster had simply asked her what she knew about the strangers and to guide him to the room.

Which was how they'd come to be standing in the, now crowded, room with the strangers.

The question of the foreigners' age was a good one. Hermione had to admit, she was curious and, seeing as Dumbledore already knew their names and the situation – if not the reason – of how they got there, asking how old they were was the next logical query.

The thoughts whirling through the bushy-haired witch's head almost drowned out the quiet answer from the dark-haired stranger – Sasuke – who was still standing by the blonde within the entrapping circle.

The man had bowed shallowly – in respect, she supposed – and kept his facial expression neutral, though Hermione thought she saw slight curiosity and disgust as he eyed the Headmaster's robes.

"I have lived 222 moons," he said in his dark voice. It was funny how different he was to his companion, even just by their voices. The blonde – Naruto – his voice was gravelly and warm, caressing the listener; Sasuke's voice was reserved, and it made Hermione dread hearing it raised in anger.

Naruto laughed lightly at his answer, "Most people measure in years, bastard," he said to him before turning toward Dumbledore (without a bow, the astute girl noticed, and she wondered if he somehow out-ranked the other stranger), "Seventeen, we're seventeen years old. And, if _you _don't mind me asking – how old are you, Grandpa?"

His last question was more than a little incredulous, as though he'd never imagined anyone could possibly be as old as the man in front of him. Hermione thought he was over-reacting. Sure, Dumbledore was old but there were plenty of muggles she'd seen who looked much older.

But that wasn't really what had caught the bright young witch's attention. No, it was their answer that had. They were seventeen. _Seventeen_. It was difficult to process, to fit their hardened eyes, obvious battle-readiness and maturity with that age. Hell, they were the same age as the twins!

"Quite old, my dear boy," the Headmaster answered, interrupting to Hermione's inner turmoil, "Well," he began, before his expression quickly changed to one of sheepishness – at least, as sheepish as the old man could look, "Oh! I do believe I haven't introduced myself. My name is Professor Albus Dumbledore, and I am Headmaster at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry. I take responsibility for the three who summoned you – with their permission of course."

The old wizard turned back to look questioningly at Ron, Hermione and Harry. The three teenagers nodded back, stunned but grateful that Dumbledore had taken charge. Hermione had the feeling that just maybe everything was going to be alright.

Sasuke nodded in return to Dumbledore, dark eyes rising to meet the Professor's stare directly – no mean feat, most of the magic-folk in the room noted.

"Very well," the exotic seventeen-year-old said calmly, stepping slightly in front of his companion and making their chain jingle lightly, "We will answer to you. Whatever the details of this contract, I assume that once we complete whatever task it was that caused you to summon us, you will send us back. We are skilled in combat, intelligence gathering and assassination. It is imperative we return to the Fire Country as soon as possible so I ask for the details of the mission now."

His tone brooked no room for argument, but it seemed as though Dumbledore's eyes lit up at his listing of their skills. Hermione barely restrained a gasp – assassination? They were barely two years older than her and the boys!

"I'm afraid the – ah – mission that we need you for is time consuming," the old headmaster said in answer and the bushy haired witch noticed that he did not mention to the strangers that there was no 'contract', nor the fact that they did not know how to send them back to their 'fire country'.

"An evil man and his followers are a danger at the moment and if you _are_ skilled in combat, it may be advantageous for our side to have you in position at my school. In any case, considering your age, you will be attending Hogwarts whilst we begin the – uh – necessary arrangements to send you back, once we allow you to go, of course."

Hermione wasn't sure if Dumbledore hadn't noticed the deep scowl which suddenly overtook the cheerful blonde's face when 'time consuming' had been mentioned, or if the old man had, and had simply ignored it. The young witch didn't know if she was quite comfortable with the situation as he'd stated it, but she supposed it was for the best.

Sasuke nodded slowly, an outward sign of accord, but his voice was quiet and deadly, "Mr Dumbledore, though we are obligated, I think you should know that Naruto and I are not happy with these conditions."

This time they all clearly saw his demonic red eyes as his narrowed gaze swept around the room, leaving shivers in its wake.

* * *

Naruto's scowl deepened. Sasuke's _Sharingan _was activated again and the blonde could tell that his friend was worried, and for good reason.

The old man had said, basically, that the mission they were required for had an indefinite timeline. Who knew how long it may take them to be released and get back to the village? Disappearing without a trace when one was supposed to be training was not looked upon lightly in the shinobi world. But disappearing without a trace when one was supposed to be training _and_ said one was a _Jinchuriki_ (demon container) who was guarding a high-class ex-missing ninja, well… He wondered sadly if it would be worth going home at all.

It had only been perhaps an hour since they'd arrived, but the blonde knew that when they didn't report to Tsunade's office for their daily check in, a couple of Chuunin would be sent looking for them. And when that effort turned up nothing, Jounin with the intention of search and recover would be sent out. Finally, though Naruto knew the Hokage would postpone it as long as possible, they'd be marked as missing nin and found in the ANBU's bingo books under 'Kill on Sight'.

After all, all the evidence would point to them choosing to leave. For a start, there was no sign of a struggle, which they would've made enough of when they were alone. So, with them being chained together, who could possibly force Sasuke Uchiha, the last _Sharingan _user and master of the _Chidori_, and Naruto Uzumaki, container of the nine-tailed demon fox and wielder of the _Rasengan_, to go anywhere they didn't want to? Let alone quietly.

Plus, it wasn't like any of their personal enemies were still alive. With the Akatsuki and Orochimaru dead, there weren't any prime suspects for their disappearance.

'So, it could be safer to never return,' Naruto thought, 'after all, there may well be an entire village looking to get rid of us once and for all.'

But the idea of never returning to the Fire Country made something clench painfully around his heart. No, they _had_ to get back home! Sasuke had only just come back, why did this all have to happen now?

At the whiny thought, an onslaught of guilt washed over him as he thought, for the first time since arriving in this weird place, about their friends back in Konoha. Kakashi-sensei, Iruka-sensei, Sakura and everyone else would be so worried. Naruto cringed. He hoped they didn't believe that he and Sasuke would just up and leave.

The blonde could feel his shoulders slumping and forced himself back into his usual state of physical awareness as he berated himself for getting lost in his thoughts. He turned his attention back to listening in on Sasuke's (the _Sharingan_ had once again been repressed, though Naruto didn't know when that'd happened) conversation with the old – _really, really old_ – man.

It seemed he hadn't missed much; after the short silence as Naruto's best friend's message sank in, the old man had been mostly chatting – almost seeming sincere – about them all becoming good friends and about various traditions and customs in what he referred to as 'The Wizarding World'.

"Mr Dumbledore," Sasuke interrupted him in the middle of a long and incessantly cheerful – 'He's almost as energetic as I am normally,' Naruto thought dryly – spiel about something called _Kuwid-itch_, "As much as we need to learn about your culture, do you not believe it would be better done outside this barrier?" The pale shinobi raised a delicate eyebrow and the strange old man looked surprised.

It had not gone unnoticed to Naruto that they had yet to move out of the small – approximately one metre across – circle they'd been standing in since they'd arrived. He had assumed there was something preventing them and Sasuke had just proven it. The Uchiha must've seen the obstruction with his family's eyes.

Dumbledore quickly covered his shock to answer the shinobi's question.

"I was unaware you had experience with protection runes," he addressed Sasuke, his hand flicking toward the weird scratchy marks around them on the floor.

"We don't," was the flat reply. Naruto knew his friend was getting annoyed and tugged sharply on the chain connecting them as a warning for Sasuke to keep his cool.

The answer made the old _wizard_ – as they apparently called males of their kind – look at them both with an unreadable look in his eyes.

"Well," Dumbledore said eventually, "To let you out of that barrier, as you put it, we need to settle the details of the contract."

He moved towards them and held out both his hands, gesturing them to take one each. Seeing no other options, they each raised their chained hand – Naruto's right and Sasuke's left – to the wizard's.

"Alastor, if you'd please," the old man said over his shoulder and with a start, Naruto remembered there were other people in the room.

The three teenagers were still huddled against the wall and the dark haired man – Sirius, Naruto remembered with a little bit of ridiculous glee – was near them.

The man who approached them however – this Alastor apparently – was yet another new face. Although, the word 'face' was a nice way to describe the mangled features. His scarred face, grisly hair, false eye and the chunk missing out of his nose made the blonde think nostalgically of Ibiki the torture expert who had been their first Chuunin examiner.

Alastor limped over and raised a strange stick which he tapped on each of the joined hands before nodding towards Dumbledore. The old man spoke again.

"Will you, Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke, promise to fulfil the mission as defined by myself, Albus Dumbledore, in total cooperation?"

"We will," the two friends said in unison, feeling as though it was the right thing to say.

Two thin tongues of brilliant flame issued from Alastor's strange stick, which he was holding slightly above their arms, and wound their ways around their hands like red-hot wires, surprising Sasuke and Naruto. It didn't burn but the shinobi barely kept themselves from wrenching their hands away.

"And will you, to the best of your ability, protect anyone under my care from harm – including that which you may perpetrate or wish to perpetrate yourselves?"

It took them a beat, but again they answered, "We will."

A second two tongues of flame shot from the stick and interlinked with the first two, making a fine, glowing chain around each of the men's hands. Directly after them came a third set of flames, these one with a red glow which twisted around the others and bound themselves thickly in each of their clasped hand, writhing like a snake before they calmed and all the light was gone.

Dumbledore nodded, pleased, and withdrew another of the strange sticks, flicking it at the floor evidently to dispel whatever barrier had been keeping them in one spot.

The old man looked at Naruto and Sasuke and smiled.

"Welcome to the Wizarding World, boys. Now, I think it's about time we see Molly for dinner."

Sasuke had an uneasy feeling about the whole situation as they followed the small crowd of people down the stairs – presumably towards this 'Molly' – but he couldn't think of much they could do.

Besides, he _was_ glad they were about to eat. Someone had to feed Naruto soon or the 'let's drive Sasuke crazy (crazier) game' would begin.

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**A/N:**

**~BETA-APPROVED(TM)~ Yup :P Sorry to all the SasuNaru fans, but when I began this fic, I didn't have that pairing in mind and, although I considered it, I decided in the end to go with the way my writing is ... well... going. Che, eloquent I know -_-' but, hey. Hope you guys keep on reading.**

**Also, sorry about the total lack of action but I need to establish some things so a 'plot building' chapter it is. **

**This is Fifth Year, for the Trio. Now, I know I've already messed up the timeline... but lets just say that er... that dude blew Mungdungus off about the cauldrons. Yeah, that was it... Ah, don't listen to me. I'm rambling. -sigh-**

**{Insert thanks + attention-whore style begging}**

**~Trix  
**


	5. Dinner and Realisations

**Disclaimer: Own nothing. Too tired to think up something witty. Urgh.**

**Warning: This is totally filler, sorry. And a long time coming. **

**Thanks: For… MERLIN. And Luna, of course =D  
Also, reviewers thank you very much.**

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_**Dinner and Not-So-Important Realisations All Round**_

Alastor 'Mad Eye' Moody watched the two new comers suspiciously as he followed them down the stairs. Something wasn't right with them. He didn't care if they looked like teenagers; his gut was telling him to be wary of these two. _Constant Vigilance!_

Even the way they walked was wrong. The Potter boy, Weasley and Granger all clomped down the staircase, feet falling heavily as gravity helped them down with each step. The two 'shinobi' by contrast made not a single sound as they walked toward the kitchen, clothing barely rustling and their footsteps completely inaudible.

The ex-Auror was pulled from his thoughts as the blonde one – Naruto – stopped walking and turned towards him.

"Quit it, will ya?" he asked, looking a little annoyed. The chain jingled lightly and his companion also stopped to face the scarred man, causing their arms to pull a little in front of their bodies.

Moody didn't answer, only frowned at the kid, wondering if he'd accidently been muttering things under his breath. The others in front of them continued ahead, not realising the blonde had stopped.

"Whatever _that_ is," he elaborated, pointing at Mad Eye's name-sake magical eye, "Quit it."

His dark-haired companion – Sasuke – nodded in silent agreement, watching the older man with intense eyes.

The ex-Auror's near-non-existent eyebrows rose in surprise as he understood what the blonde was saying. The kid could feel his magical eye watching them. Moody was a little baffled. After all, though the eye _did_ give off a significant amount of magical energy in order to be able to see clear definition as well as through items, it was specifically designed to be undetectable, melding in with any wizards own magic so much so that they could never sense it. However these two _shinobi_ could apparently feel that magic, in an uncomfortable way since they asked him to stop – much like any unsuspecting muggle. Did that mean they had no magical core? If they were mere muggles why did he feel so wary of them?

"Sorry," he answered them gruffly, still frowning at his thoughts, he forced his electric blue eye to focus on the cracks in the old ceiling as he continued to study the newcomers with his normal eye.

_Muggles? _

* * *

"Out! Out of the kitchen!" Molly Weasley cried shooing her twin sons away from the mashed potatoes and gravy.

As she turned to fix the oven, a voice sounded from the doorway behind her making the matronly woman jump.

"I do hope that doesn't include me."

"Oh, no of course not Albus," she answered with a smile when she saw the owner of the voice. "What can I do for you?" she asked, turning back to preparing dinner.

"Well," the old headmaster said, eyes twinkling in that mysterious way of his, "I just came to warn you that you'll have two extra guests tonight. They'll be staying until the Hogwarts' term begins."

"Oh?" Molly ventured, most of her concentration set on chopping the pumpkin as she stirred the stew.

The old man gazed seriously at the woman in front of him.

"Molly, be careful with these two. They may seem young but I believe they may be dangerous."

Turning sharply at his words, she looked worried.

"You... You don't think they might be connected to You-Know-Who, do you?" She asked, voice lowering at the dark-wizard's name.

Dumbledore laughed lightly, "No, no my dear, I can promise you of their loyalty. They have just, I suspect, seen a great deal more than most their age. Well, I'll leave you to finish dinner - it does smell delicious, I'm truly sorry that I'm going to miss it. Goodnight, Molly."

And with that, he left the kitchen to head for the floo, already slotting the two shinobi into his plans.

* * *

_Meanwhile;_

In Konoha, it was hot.

A busty blonde woman – whom _very _few would dare describe as such – slumped forward over her desk wishing she was allowed to order the ANBU guards to fan her. In her opinion it should be illegal to have so much office work as on days like those.

"I'm sorry to disturb you Lady Tsunade," the blonde's assistant, Shizune, said, wiping the sweat from her brow as she poked her head into the office looking slightly concerned about something, "Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha have yet to report in this morning; I just thought you'd like to know."

The fifth Hokage continued to lie on the wooden surface, staring spitefully at her in-box full of paperwork for a few moments longer, before acknowledging the other woman.

"Oh, I wouldn't worry too much, Shizune," she answered, still glaring at the innocent looking sheets of paper a short while before glancing up, "Naruto probably slept in and Sasuke's become rather indulging when it comes to that brat. Send Hideaki and one of the other Chuunins to wake them up."

Shizune nodded and left the office, wondering if her boss was going to get around to her work or just give it the evil eye all day.

* * *

_Back at 12 Grimmauld Place;_

Sasuke kept his face carefully blank as he stared at the assorted food in front of him. It was very… rich. He wasn't quite sure he could stomach such a heavy meal. There was so much red meat and where was the rice? Sure, after… well, _after_, the last Uchiha hadn't exactly had many home-cooked meals, but still he'd never in his life eaten this indulgently.

Even though the others at the table had dug in with all the enthusiasm of an _Akimichi_ at a barbeque feast – the teen called Ron especially reminding him of Choji with his table manners – both he and Naruto hesitantly loaded their plates with small portions of meat and vegetables that they thought they recognised. With no chopsticks in sight – and the others eating with strange tiny trident-like objects – they glanced at each other briefly before shrugging and each picking up the small, blunt knife next to their plate in order to skewer their food. If the wizards thought their habits weird, they didn't comment, too focused on their own inhalation of sustenance and there was relative silence, bar the clinking of the odd eating utensils and the occasional '_Please pass the vegies'_, until everyone had finished eating.

With a full (but not too full) stomach, Sasuke felt a little more relaxed. His chakra was virtually replenished and that always made him feel better in an unknown situation. Sure, he and Naruto were paranoid enough to always carry a decent supply of soldier pills on them _all the time_, but real food was always better for your body. That little bit of relief, knowing that he wouldn't have to worry about his stomach for a little while, eased one of the many worries running through his ever-working mind.

Unfortunately, this small relaxation was short lived. After dinner, the interrogation began.

Of course, he knew he was being dramatic thinking of it as an 'interrogation'. Really, he'd been in much worse situations – tortured, beaten, endured horrifying illusions. But there was something about 'normal' social interactions where people where far from polite and formal, and instead downright curious and invasive – hell, even _friendly_ – which made Sasuke distinctly uncomfortable. The last Uchiha simply had no idea how to react to civilians. He just couldn't relate to someone's biggest worry being the economy falling and not the enemy finding them. He especially couldn't relate to those who had never seen anyone die, nor been the one who struck the killing blow. Sometimes, he felt as though he were different species.

So, when the red-headed motherly figure turned and asked kindly, "Did you enjoy your meal?" Sasuke just sat, stoic and silent, in his chair as Naruto answered her, knowing just what to say. _People_ was one thing his blonde friend excelled in, and Sasuke had never been quite so grateful – not that he'd ever even _imply_ it – that the loud idiot was the one stuck with him.

"I'm glad you liked it," the woman – her name was Mrs Weasley, they'd been introduced to everyone before they'd sat down to eat – was saying, her smile kind, as Sasuke tuned back into the conversation.

"We both did. It was amazing!" Naruto said, grin wide and tone sincere, "It's very different to what we have at home, and it's not ramen, but it was really filling!" He finished his praise with a two-handed thumbs-up, causing Sasuke's arm to jerk a bit and their chain to jingle.

The matronly woman blushed slightly at his enthusiasm, looking pleased. She was about to say something when the red-headed, older man who was sitting next to her – Mr Weasley, her husband, both shinobi recalled – interrupted, bringing everyone's attention towards him.

"Does that chain-thing bother you boys?" he asked, brow furrowed in concern, "I'm sure we can remove it."

"No!" Naruto barked; his face hardening for a second, his voice too loud. It only took the blonde a second to recover from his social faux pas and he let out a loud, friendly and completely fake laugh to cover the sudden speed in his pulse and the spike in his chakra. His emotions always had been the downfall of his control.

_No, no, no, no! He just got back! No. I won't just let him die._

"Sorry, I, hah…. I meant thanks, but no. We have to keep the chain on or else…" _the ones who want him gone will get their way,_ "… or else we'll get in trouble."

He grinned and the strangers were lulled back into their sense of comfort at the buoyancy of it. Inwardly Naruto scowled not failing to notice the fact that the subject of his thoughts had offered no resistance to Mr Weasley's offer. _Why hadn't Sasuke said anything?_ After all, it was his dark-haired friend's skin if the stupid thing was broken.

The 'wizarding' teenagers at the table – the original three had been joined by another two red-headed twin boys and a younger, but equally scarlet-haired, girl – had been mostly quiet until then, but the bushy-haired girl, Hermione, spoke up at the turn in conversation.

"Surely, being free while you're here would be worth getting in a little trouble?" She said looking genuinely confused, very curious and a touch scared. The sharp girl was obviously wary of them.

Sasuke remained silent in answer, looking like a statue. Not even his chest moved much, and without a ninja's senses he may even have seemed as though he had no breath at all. Naruto resisted the urge to punch him. _Sasuke should care more about himself, damn it! If this chain comes off so does his freaking head!_

The blonde couldn't bring himself to grin anymore, so he just smiled sadly, turning to Hermione.

"Nothing is worth that kind of trouble."

The finality of the words had the adult wizards at the table exchanging concerned looks and the teenagers exchanging looks of confusion, but Naruto couldn't be bothered concerning himself with what the weird strangers thought of him. He suddenly felt fatigued, home sick and incredibly frustrated with his uncaring bastard of a best friend.

Understandably, conversation pretty much died out after that and it wasn't long before Naruto was throwing himself into a bed in the room Sirius said they could use, before falling into a shallow but dreamless sleep.

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**Thanks guys, really, for following me even though I'm a terrible terrible person (who is bad at updating)**

**~Trix  
**


	6. Lost Race and A New Face

**Disclaimer: JKR and WB, not mine**

**Warning: Crap updating – but I am thinking of this fic! (After all this time? Always.)**

**Thanks: Reviewers. You motivate me. And other crossover fic authors – I love the genre (if you can call it that) and I wish there was more crossovers!**

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_**A Lost Race, A New Face and A Bit of Lamenting**_

Shinobi. Shinobi in 12 Grimmauld Place. Remus Lupin was certainly worried.

At school, Remus had always been the bookish one. It started, he supposed, as a way of desperately proving to himself and to others - though they may not have known it - that he was not a beast. That he was instead a scholar, intelligent, learned. It had morphed into a genuine love for learning, gaining knowledge and for teaching.

Because of this, Remus knew about Shinobi. He had studied them when he was researching the dark arts and its defence.

Shinobi, he recalled, also known as Ninja, were the elite warriors of an extinct race of preternatural folk from the Orient. They were ruthless, stealthy and efficient killers who were hired out for missions of any kind by their dictator Lords and protected their village in times of war. These warriors used many types of weaponry, such as maces, knives, swords and throwing needles, but were also highly trained in unarmed combat.

What scared Remus the most however was the thing that had classified them as noteworthy in the study of ancient races. Shinobi could manipulate their bodies, surroundings and even the minds of their opponents using a powerful force made up of physical and spiritual energies released directly from their bodies – something like strong magic but without the need for a wand. Texts remaining from the time told of great warriors, people who could regrow great forests in minutes, flatten mountains single-handedly, breathe inescapable fire and create hundreds of versions of themselves without breaking a sweat. The books and scrolls spoke of terrifying demons and the even more terrifying men and women who could control them. Of course, history was prone to exaggeration but the few sources available from Asia all said similar things about Shinobi – that they were great and powerful and that their techniques should remain buried with them.

How could Sirius have been so stupid? Sure his friend had never been known for rational thinking, but encouraging teenagers to summon Shinobi? He sighed and rubbed at the premature lines on his forehead.

Realistically, it was probably ridiculous to assume that these teenagers who called themselves shinobi were even on par with those from the little-known legends. Still, there was something about them that set all of his instincts on edge – a faint but distinct fight or flight feeling.

"Well, those kids were out the minute their heads touched the pillows," Sirius said with a huffed laugh as he came into the kitchen after getting the teenagers to bed, interrupting Remus' thoughts and breaking the previous silence, "Wish it was that easy to get our lot to sleep – had to threaten _them_ with extra cleaning duty!"

"Those poor boys, they must've been exhausted!" Molly said in answer, face turning to the mothering look she got when thinking of children in general, "They didn't eat very much, either."

There was a short silence as they all thought over the new-comers.

"They said they were shinobi, right?" Remus put forward after a while, tired of the contemplation.

"Yes, the blonde one asked how you could get _shinobi_ as summons," Sirius answered, looking questioningly at his old friend.

"If they –"

The former professor hesitated.

"If they what, Lupin?" Moody asked gruffly, urging on the conversation.

"If they really are shinobi, they could be extremely dangerous. I know Dumbledore said they should go to Hogwarts with the children, but I'm not so sure that's the best idea…"

"And why's that?" Molly put in indignantly, chest rising, "They're just children as well, Remus! We should look after them as much as we can!"

"Molly," Sirius said softly, looking between the Weasley matron and his friend, "You do realise that Dumbledore has struck a bargain with them, right? Protection of Hogwarts in exchange for their safe return home. Sasuke – the one with black hair – he said that they were skilled in assassination and subterfuge," he turned to Remus, "You might be right about them being too dangerous around the children, but Dumbledore has them under an unbreakable vow. We all just have to trust his judgement and power."

Before Molly had time to voice her reaction, Moody spoke up, once again addressing Remus.

"Lupin, you know much about these so-called _shinobi_ then?" he asked.

Remus looked hesitantly at the quiet Molly, but found no expected objection, just silent worry and unwilling acknowledgement.

"Not much, I know of an extinct race of people who called themselves shinobi. They were hardened fighters. Eventually they disappeared – there are mixed views about whether they destroyed themselves or whether they hid and eventually died out. Either way, in this world they no longer exist."

"Were they muggles?" Moody questioned further, surprising the people around him with the question.

"Well… not exactly," Remus answered in a quiet voice, "they couldn't use magic – not in our sense of the word – but they had a different type of energy. Some wizarding historians believe it was a myth, but all the sources point to some type of power possessed by their race."

A low hum was the only reply. After a beat, Remus spoke again.

"Look, I just wanted to say, be careful of them – okay? They look young but if they really are shinobi they could be very dangerous."

"Constantly vigilance." Moody agreed.

"I supposed we're lucky they're on our side," Sirius muttered as the other stood up and said their goodbyes.

* * *

_Meanwhile;_

"You called me, Lady Tsunade?"

The soft, deep voice, respectful bow and long brown hair belonged rightfully to the fearsome ANBU Captain Hawk, but today there was no need for the anonymity of the red and white bird mask. Hyuuga Neji stood in front of the Hokage merely as a clan member and Jounin as he watched the older woman gulp down a glass of what was no doubt sake.

She coughed lightly, indiscreetly wiping her mouth on her sleeve. The lines around her eyes were more exaggerated than they had been two days ago when he'd reported in on his previous mission. He wondered what could have her so worried.

"Yes," she answered, a sigh on the tail of the word, her mouth turning down in seriousness, "I'm keeping this quiet for the moment and I've chosen you, Hyuuga, because you're close enough to this situation to understand, far away enough to make informed decisions and still skilled enough to be of use. This will be difficult, and it will need a delicate political touch as well I fear. Before I tell you the details, do you agree to take this mission?"

"Of course, Lady Hokage."

The blonde woman moved her cup to the side and shuffled some of the papers on her desk in an unsubtle but subconscious stalling motion. Her sombre expression made her look her age for a few moments before she looked up, eyes sharp once again.

"Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke have gone missing."

* * *

When Naruto blinked his eyes open to find Sasuke sitting cross-legged next to him staring unseeingly out the window, it was with less than a thought that he made a ram hand sign and focused his chakra, extending the chain as he rolled out of bed.

Unfortunately, rather than easily rolling onto his feet to sleepily begin their morning stretches and katas like they usually did on miserably cloudy days like he could instinctively tell this one was shaping up to be, the blonde landed unceremoniously on the floor. Which, as it turned out, – and in his defence – happened to be about eighty centimetres lower than he was used to this early in the morning. He liked his futon, dammit.

Sasuke, who was still sitting on the inn-style bed, snorted quietly at the startled yelp, turning his black eyes towards his teammate.

"Morning, idiot. Been getting up long?"

He affected a calm and superior mien but Naruto knew by the less-than-cutting insult that his friend was still stewing about the whole '_wizards_' thing.

_Ah. Shit. Right, wizards, summons. Stuck here for an indefinite amount of time. That's why I wasn't in my comfy futon._

Muttering something unintelligible which may or may not have questioned the respectability of Sasuke's parentage – once or twice – the blonde picked himself up from the scene of his wakeup call and yanked on the lengthened chain, signalling for Sasuke to move as well.

It was a synchronised, tai chi style, stretch kata that Sirius walked in on the two shinobi practicing.

"I know it's early, but time to-" he began in a loud and cheery voice as he opened the door, but stopped short when he noticed they were standing in the middle of the room, balancing carefully one leg with theirs arms flowing smoothly around them, "-get up," he finished a awkwardly.

Naruto thought it was amusing that he was so clearly taken aback by their actions, but didn't let it show on his face. By silent agreement, they finished the sweep they had already begun before arranging themselves back to their normal standing positions and turning to face the dark-haired wizard expectantly.

He looked between the two of them, a wariness surfacing that they hadn't witnessed in the man the night before.

"Uh, breakfast is ready now, if you'd like some. And there're some people you need to meet."

Glancing briefly at Sasuke, Naruto smiled at Sirius and nodded, shortening the chain again so they wouldn't trip over it and following after him out the door.

As it turned out, there were quite a few people Sirius intended them to meet. The two shinobi walked into a kitchen as lively as it could be in a place like the gloomy house. There were people packed in, all in the strange dress-like clothing that seemed to be the fashion of the wizards. Some were sombre, some were colourful – there was even one girl with bright pink hair with quite colourful clothing that Naruto was sure Sakura would have loved – and all were completely impractical for any type of physical activity. Naruto still wondered at the way these _wizards_ lived.

Nobody seemed to really notice as Naruto and Sasuke were led into the bustling room by Sirius. The man loudly cleared his throat and the quiet, permeating chatter calmed as everyone turned to look towards the source of the sound.

"My friends, Dumbledore was not able to make it today but he has asked me to introduce these two _Shinobi_ to you," there was a murmur through the group and many confused faces as Sirius addressed the group. He continued, "They are in the service of Dumbledore under an unbreakable vow and are here to help us in the fight against the Dark Lord, namely in the protection of Hogwarts."

He turned towards the two shinobi, gesturing to the rest of the room, "These people are the Order of the Phoenix, we're a group dedicated to fighting against the dark wizard, Voldemort. Dumbledore has asked that you be aware of these people. If you would introduce yourselves?"

Scanning the crowd, Naruto noticed that none of the teenagers they had met the night before were in attendance. He frowned slightly, wondering why they were not included when they were clearly eager to help this 'Order'.

Still, he opened his mouth and addressed the people, "My name is Naruto, and my companion is Sasuke."

If Sirius felt that wasn't enough information, he didn't complain as he asked the Order members to introduce themselves in return. After the round of names, the Order continued on as it apparently would with a normal meeting, Sirius beckoning Sasuke and Naruto to take a seat.

Though there were quite a few people, making the room feel a little crowded, the Order of the Phoenix didn't really have many members. Considering it seemed as though they were facing war against this crazy man, whose name everyone apparently knows, and his army that he called his 'Death Eaters', they could really use more, better trained people – _wizards_. Naruto sighed as he listened to intelligence that had been gathered, and endured the curious and distrusting looks directed towards him and his comrade.

How had they gotten themselves into the middle of another war?

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**Thanks guys, again, for following me even though I'm a terrible terrible person (who is bad at updating)**


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